Automatic vehicle gate



July 17, 192s.

l/VVENTOR fi/fred L. Hu q/ves I A. L. HUGHES AUTOMATIC VEHICLE GATE Filed Aug. 29, 1927 Panama .luly 17, was,

untan- ALFRED L. HUGHES, or coLoRADo ssnmes, COLORADO.

AUTOMATIC VEHICLE GATE.

Appl'ication filedAugust 29, 1927. Serial No. 216,039.

This invention relates to automatic vehicle gates, designed to be "opened and closed through the weight of the vehicle as the 'same passes upon or leaves the specially provided tread boards of the'apparatus. The prime object of the invention isto provide a relatively simple,practical and eflicient self-operating gate for use upon roads, drive-ways 'or garage doors.

In the drawing Figure 1 is a perspective view showing a gate as mounted upon a drive-dayand partly open, a section of the drive-way being excavated from around the working elements, and sections of the protective housings of the working elements being broken out for the purpose of clearly'illustrating those parts;

Figure 2 is a vertical transverse section through the two gate posts, runway and the operating mechanism below the runway. The invention includes avehicle run-way 1 positioned in the driveway 2 immediately under the gate 3. Tread boards stare oppositely hinged at the points 5' in one of the wl1eelways 6 at one side of the gate 3, the.

free ends 7 of these tread boards being spaced apart longitudinally :just enough'to permit the gate3 to be positioned between them transversely upon the drive-way 2. The gate 3 is slidably suspended from the trolley rail 8 which runs over rollers 9 depending from the cross bar 11 supported between the hollow gate posts 10 which are anchored in the run-way 1. The hollow posts 10 are also provided with lateral, inwardly turned cable apertures 12 at their upper ends and the1r hollow interiors are connected with the under side of the run-way 1 through the lower cable apertures 13 formed through the said run-way in axial alignment with the said posts. lVithin a cavity 1 1 formed below the run-way 1 and tread boards 4 a housing 15 is positioned and preferably secured to the under side of the said run-way. A rectangular frame 16 is anchored within the housing 15, the same being disposed vertically below and in longitudinal alignment with the tread boards 4:. The frame '16 includes a plate 17 which is fastened to the under face of the run-way 1, vertical side bars 18 depending from the plate 17 at either sideof the post 10 at that side of the run-way, and a lower cross bar 19 which rigidly connects the lower ends of the two side bars 18.

The frame 16 is further supported by means of a brace 20 extended angularly from 'way 1.

the cross bar 19 to the under face of the run- Upon the two vertical side bars 18 are mounted rack guide rails 21 and racks 22 areslidably mounted therein, the same fastening outwardly. Rack bars 23 are passed through apertures 24 formed through V 'thefrun-way 1 and have their upper ends hingedly connected at 25 with the free ends of the tread boa'rdst and their lower ends ends of the said rack bars 23;

hinged ly" connected at 26 with the upper Thelower: ends of therack bars 23 are I 'rigidly'connected by means ofa crossbar 27. Retractible' springs 28 having their ends attached at 29 to the cross bar {27 and at 32 horizontally across the faces of the rack '30 to the under face of therun-way 1, serve V e to normally throw the rack bars 23 and the free ends 7 of the tread boards hupwardly.

A pulley shaft 31 is journaled in bearings bars 23. Pinions 33 are rigidly-mounted 7 upon the ends of: the shaft 31,'i'n-mesh with the teeth 34f of the rack bars 23, and gate opening and closing pulleys 35 and 36 respectively are rigidly mounted upon the medial part of the shaft 31 immediately below the post 10 atfthat side-of the run- I way. Another pulley wheel 37 is mounted upon a-sha-ft 38, the latter shaft being journaled in bearings 39'depending from the under face of the run-way 1 immediately below the opposite gate post 10. Small pulleys 40 i are also journaled within the upper ends .of the posts 10 at the cable'apertures 12. The

gate 3 being closed, agate opening cable41 v is fastened by one end at'the point 42 up wardly' upon "the gatevopening pulley 35,

and is then brought down under that pulley I with a left hand turn as indicated by the arrows shown on the pulley 35, and is extended under the lower pulley 37, up through the post 10 at that side of the run-way, over its upper cooperating pulley 4:0, and has its free end then led out through the adjacent aperture 12 and brought back to the opposite or starting end of the gate 3 immediately over the tread boards 4, and

is fastened to a pin 43 extended from the upper bar of the gate 3. WVith this cable 41 drawn properly taut, downward pressure upon either of the linked tread boards 4, will operate to open the gate 3, the samev slide ing laterally upon the rail'9. 'A similar gate closing cable at has one end fastened at 15 upwardly upon the gate closing pulley 36, is then led with a right hand turn around the pulley as indicated by the arrow shown on posite directions.

A slotted housing 46 may be provided for enclosing the exposed portions of the cables 11 and 44, where they connect with the pin 2,13 and travel along the u per part of the rgleze in the opening and c osing operations,

t 1 ends of this using being supported between the posts 1,0.

In use thewheels of a vehicle running .upon the 'treadboards 4 will open the gate 3 v :tion,-it isunderstood that I may vary from in the manner described; and as the vehicle i asses through and the wheels quit the r ds 4,,the'springs 28 operate to close the gate' 5 r I have herein described a certain specific manner and method of constructing and assembling the elements of my inventhe same in minor details, not departing from the spirit of my invention, so .as "best to censtruct a practical device for the pur- Q 6 intended, as defined in the appended I claim: I I 1. An automaticyehicle gate for a driveway, comprising a runway positioned across the drive, the runway having two cable apertures through. its opposite margins at the sidesof the drive; two hollow post's an-V chored upon the runway immediately ;over the said'cable apertures, the said posts having upper lateral cable apertures turned .inwardly; cable pulleys journaled at the'upper cable apertures; a. lower cable pulley ournaled below the runway at one of the cable apertures thereof; a horizontal cross-bar connecting the upper ends of the gate posts; a gate slidablysuspended from the said crossbar; two tread boards reversely hinged within one of the wheelways of the runway at the opposite side of the runway from the said lower cable pulley, and having their free ends disposed adjacent opposite sides of the gate; a rectangular frame secured tread boards, the frame being located vertically and longitudinal alignment with the tread boards; connected rack bars slidably and vertically mounted upon said frame immediately below the free ends "of the tread boards and operatively connected thereto; a shaft disposed across the frame and the said rack bars, the ends thereofbeing journaled in the frame; pinions on the ends of the shaft in mesh with theracks of the rack bars; gate opening and closing pulleys media'lly mounted upon the shaft; gate opening and closing cables'attached to their respective pulleys and extended upv through the hollow postsover the cable pulleys'and operatively attached to the said gate; and

means for resiliently holding the tread boards in their elevated position.

2. In combination with a ye'hiclegate slidably mounted across a drive,tread boards at opposite sides of the gate at :one end thereof and adapted for vertical movement; means for normally maintaining the tread boards in their uppermostwposition; rack bars connected with the said tread boards;

a shaft journaled across the rack bars; pinions on said shaft in mesh with the rack bars; gate opening and closing pulleys on said shaft; and gate o ening and closing cables mounted over said pulleys operatively connected with said gate.

In testimony, whereof I aflix my signature.

ALFRED anuGnEs. a a

, 55 to the under side of the runway below the 

